PFRDG Project Examines Health & Cognition of the Homeless
Gesulla Cavanaugh, Ph.D. is the Director of Nursing Research in the NSU Ron and Kathy Assaf College of Nursing. Dr. Cavanaugh was recently funded through the President’s Faculty Research & Development Grant (PFRDG) program for her project titled “Cognitive and Functional Impairments &
Premature Aging in the Homeless Population.”
Tell me about your recent grant-funded project.
This grant examines homeless individuals living in shelters and the resultant health disparities, specifically their susceptibility to dementia and early onset aging. This project is a continuation of a project I received funding for from the American Heart Association also looking at health outcomes for homeless individuals. The outcomes we are investigating include looking at dementia and the effect of repeated exposure to stressors/ chronic stress on development of dementia, health literacy, and scores on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment.
Who is working with you on this project?
This is a collaborative effort with colleagues in the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine (KPCOM) and Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine (NSU MD). Dr. Raymond Ownby (KPCOM) has developed a tool on health literacy, and we are expanding its use to be a valid instrument for homeless individuals. Dr. Roody Joseph (KPCOM) is a physical health science expert providing insight on physical health and how to engage homeless individuals in healthy lifestyle choices. Additionally, he is working on helping us collect data on a healthy control group. Dr. Patrick Hardigan (NSU MD) will assist with statistical analysis.
We also have a neurologist from Nicklaus Children’s Hospital helping us to investigate blood samples, grip strength, Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores, and collecting EEG data. And we have engaged undergraduate students from the Halmos College of Arts & Sciences as well as College of Psychology, nursing students, and students from NSU MD.
How does this project connect with your other work at NSU?
I am the Director of Research in the College of Nursing at NSU, where I hope to support and promote research among our faculty. I also teach students through coursework in how to engage with homeless patients and to be mindful of their experiences.
What advice do you have for other grant seekers at NSU?
As I did with this PFRDG project, I suggest collaborating with other faculty at NSU across various departments and also with professionals in the community. This creates a strong and compelling research team.
What is the next grant proposal or project on your agenda?
I would like to further this project with funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). We are working to gather enough preliminary data from this project in order to demonstrate to NIH the potential for our success in an expanded research project with their funding. Many NIH Institutes and Centers have a focus on health disparities research, including underserved populations such as racial/ethnic minorities and the homeless, which we would align with.
What is your hope for the outcomes in this project and expanding on it in the future?
My hope is to demonstrate the need that homeless shelters have for a program focusing on supporting individuals to improve their health and learn the importance of healthy lifestyles. From our learnings, we hope to inform individuals of resources and programs to promote health in a safe way. In the future I hope to be able to use grant funding to have physical therapists and exercise scientists present in shelters to teach homeless individuals how to exercise appropriately.